Tamil Nadu CM Stalin Writes to President Murmu Requesting Approval for NEET Exemption Bill – News18

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has written to President Droupadi Murmu, requesting approval for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) Exemption Bill. The Tamil Nadu assembly passed the bill earlier this year, however, the governor of the state refused to give assent to it.

The open letter comes after a NEET aspirant from Chennai died by suicide due to poor scores in the medical exam followed by his father’s subsequent suicide. “This letter to Hon’ble President Smt. Droupadi Murmu is one among our various efforts to remove NEET injustice. We will not rest until we remove #NEET!,” the TN Chief Minister posted on X.

The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, in his letter, claimed that the NEET Exemption Bill is the result of Legislative consensus, arising from the collective will of the people of the state. MK Stalin said that NEET benefits only metropolitan children who can afford expensive coaching classes.

“Each day of delay in its implementation costs not only valuable medical seats to deserving students but invaluable human lives to our society. I, therefore, solicit your immediate intervention in the matter and urge you to accord assent at the earliest to the above Bill passed by the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly,” he said via the post.

MK Stalin further urged the President to approve the bill as soon as possible. He also asserted that any topics with a direct connection to people, particularly education, should be added to the Constitution’s state list.

Among the key points of the bill, Stalin said he wants to remove NEET and called the competitive exam “injustice”. He stated that this letter to the President is one among his government’s various efforts to scrap the exams and get assent to the NEET Exemption Bill. He also said that he will not “rest” until the Bill is assented to.

The CM has been demanding an exemption from the examination process completely as he believes that the students are too anxious and are under immense pressure to pass the exam. His battle with the examinations has started due to the continuous rise in suicide cases of aspirants due to failing the exam. The govt of TN has passed the bill in the assembly twice, but Governor RN Ravi refused to assent to it.

If you or someone you know needs help, call any of these helplines: Aasra (Mumbai) 022-27546669, Sneha (Chennai) 044-24640050, Sumaitri (Delhi) 011-23389090, Cooj (Goa) 0832- 2252525, Jeevan (Jamshedpur) 065-76453841, Pratheeksha (Kochi) 048-42448830, Maithri (Kochi) 0484-2540530, Roshni (Hyderabad) 040-66202000, Lifeline 033-64643267 (Kolkata)